Global PR focuses on SA

The South African public relations industry has the perfect opportunity to put their industry on the map like never before over the next 12 months, with African and global PR attention on the local industry.

The FAPRA annual conference in Johannesburg last week was the start of a year of focus on the public relations industry in South Africa as we also play host to the world body for public relations, the Global Alliance, in Cape Town next year, May 2007, in a World Public Relations Festival.

The Public Relations Institute of South Africa will also celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2007 and intends to beat the drum of PR in South Africa more loudly than ever before.

At the end of the two-day conference, where delegates debated the need for African solutions to Africa's reputation problems; and report backs were given from the Global Alliance training and academic standards initiatives, African delegates expressed their disappointment with the reception they had received in South Africa.

They were disappointed at various organisational issues, such as a lack of welcome at the airport, but most of all, they were disappointed at the zero Government representation at the conference and the small showing by South African public relations practitioners - none of the big local South African PR firms bothered to show. And at the last Fapra conferences in Nigeria and Kenya, at the very least, the events were opened by the Minister of Information or Communication, if not the President of the country.

Crisis of identity

Organisers would never say this in a public forum like the Fapra conference, but the fact is that PR in SA still has a crisis of identity and a lack of professional status in South Africa. Much of this is due to the lack of transformation in the industry and that despite the efforts of the three Prisa black presidents, it only signed the industry transformation charter in 2005 - along with the advertising industry and marketers.

It's also because most PR practitioners do not feel that Prisa represents them. This is an age old hangover from the past too, as the energy in the regional Prisa structures is new and work is being done. And to quote Mahatma Gandhi: "Be the change you want to see."

While some of the blame has to fall on the organisers, Prisa, it is a fact that public relations in South Africa does not enjoy the professional support of Government or the media, or from its own profession. There are many reasons for this apathy or indifference and some of it is historical, some of it is empowerment related and some of it is because public relations people are too busy working for their clients and don't have time get involved in an industry that they feel hasn't always been there for them professionally - over half the industry are not members of any PR association, locally or globally.

But whatever the historical reasons, no industry can remain on the sidelines, particularly not when that industry is in the business of communications - and the irony of this did not escape delegates at the Fapra conference!

Empower yourselves

There are clear reasons why all public relations practitioners need to empower themselves with knowledge and networks, whether they are just entering the profession or heading up their own agencies, no matter if they are one of the top 10 or a one-person business:

1. What is clear is that African PR firms are already entering into competitive pitches for international business with South African PR agencies. One Fapra delegate I spoke to knew all about his South African counterparts he was pitching against.
2. Whatever the reasons, and it's not just one, the PR industry has to shape up and get involved if they want to compete on this continent. You cannot blame Prisa or any other industry networking events and forums, if you sit on the sidelines. You have to pay your membership dues and get involved - or start your own forum for debate, like Brian Berkman did, and as are other PRs in the industry that are plugged into international organisations like Global Fluency, a network of PR firms.
3. Impetus is always created by high profile events such as the Fapra conference and the World PR Festival next year, creating opportunities for savvy practitioners.
4. This industry is crying out for education and training and updated knowledge on public relations practices as is evident by the large numbers that turn up at industry forums on media measurement and at local PR conferences. The Global Alliance, through our local and African academics will be taking decisions that will affect your training and accreditation.
5. Networking: if you run a business or take your career seriously, you have to get involved in your industry. Otherwise it's just a job. Getting involved in industry forums and sharing knowledge with your peers is how you build, grow and create knowledge in an industry, leaving a legacy for those who come after. Knowledge management within your own company is also key in preserving and adding to the intellectual memory of your organisation and structures.

One of the Fapra Executive Committee resolutions taken at this conference was to involve the Francophone-African countries and Arab countries more in Fapra and institute regular communication with members. It intends to be more than an annual talk shop.

It would be nice to see the South African public relations industry talking - in any forum - so that next year, when the global PR fraternity descend on us, they feel they have been welcomed, not like our African peers felt this past week. The South African public relations industry has much to share with the rest of Africa and internationally. This is a dynamic and serious industry on the whole, with huge talent and ability.